105,313Records 71,083Employers 85,290Hospitalizations 27,770Amputations 2015-01-01 2025-10-31
Safety Incidents OSHA Severe Injury Reports · 2015–2025

OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14518500

GIN POLE,COMMUNICATION TOWER,TELECOM WORK,FALL,FALL PROTECTION

Event
GIN POLE,COMMUNICATION TOWER,TELECOM WORK,FALL,FALL PROTECTION
Linked inspection
No inspection record linked to this accident's victims.
Summary number
14518500
Report ID
419700

Event description

EMPLOYEE KILLED IN FALL FROM TOP OF COMMUNICATION TOWER

Investigation abstract

EMPLOYEE #1 WAS AT THE TOP OF A 280 FOOT COMMUNICATION TOWER, ASSISTING IN THE I NSTALLATION OF A TRIANGULAR ANTENNA SUPPORT FOR USE WITH CELLULAR TELEPHONES. TH E ANTENNA SUPPORT WAS FIRST ASSEMBLED ON THE GROUND. THE SUPPORT WAS THEN HOISTE D TO THE TOP OF THE TOWER WITH A GIN POLE HOISTING SYSTEM. THE BOLTS AND NUTS FO R THE ANTENNA SUPPORT WERE LEFT LOOSE TO FACILITATE LATER ADJUSTMENT. THE TWO EM PLOYEES WERE BOLTING THE ANTENNA SUPPORT TO THE TOWER'S EAST SIDE WHEN THEY DISC OVERED THAT SOME OF THE BOLT HOLES WOULD NOT ALIGN PROPERLY. (THE ABSTRACT ENDS HERE. I ASSUME THAT THE SECOND PAGE OF THE OSHA 170 WAS LOST. EMPLOYEE #1 OBVIOU SLY FELL FOR SOME REASON AND WAS KILLED. W.G.)

Victim

  1. #1 Fatality Age 26 M

    Nature of injury
    21
    Part of body
    19
    Event type
    5
    Source
    8
    Occupation code
    597
    Human factor
    20
    Environmental factor
    13
    Task assigned
    1

Codes shown verbatim from OSHA's accident-investigation database. A human-readable decoder is coming in a future release once the accident_lookup2 dictionary is loaded.